Piano or similar instrument.



No. 723,584. PATENTED MAR. 24, 1903 s. W. CLARK.

PIANO OR SIMILAR INSTRUMENT.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 3, 1902.

H0 MODEL.

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SARAH WOOD CLARK, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

PIANO OR SIMILAR'JNSTRUMENT.

SPECIFICATION forming part Of Letters Patent N 0. 723,584, dated March 24, 1903. Application filed April 3, 1902. Serial No- 101,227. (No model.)

To to whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, SARAH W001) CLARK, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of the city of New York, borough of Manhattan, in the county and State of New York, have invented a new and Improved Piano or Similar Instrument, of which the following is afull, clear, and exact'desoription.

This invention relates particularly to improvements in lids or tops for pianos or the like, the object being to provide a lid or top' that will also serve as a sounding-board to diffuse and give distinctness and effect to the m usical sounds; and it also relates to improvements in the body or main sounding-boards.

I will describe a piano or similar instrument embodying myinvention and then point out the novel features in the appended claims.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, in which similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the figures.

Figure l is a front elevation of a grand piano, showing a lid and main sounding-board embodying my invention as applied thereto. Fig. 2 is a plan view of the lid, and Fig. 3 illustrates the invention in connection with an upright piano.

Referring to the drawings, 1 designates the lid, which in a grand piano will have a substantially triangular contour. This lid is hinged at one side to the piano, as indicated at 2, and it is formed, preferably, of strips of thin wood secured together by glue or otherwise. The lid is concavo-convex in form, the concaved side being downward.

In Fig. 3 the lid 3 is also concavo-convex and formed of thin strips of material.

By making the cover of thin material a greater vibration is secured than would be the case with a thick lid or cover, and obviously when the lid is raised, as indicated in the drawings, the sounds produced on the piano by striking against the under side of the lid will be diffused about the room and the sound will be materially augmented.

As the board is concaved or dished in all directions from a central pointthat is, longitudinally and transversely-At is obvious that the sound will be deflected or projected in all directions, which result cannot be obconcentrate the sound on the upper or lid sounding-board, from which it is difiused, as before mentioned.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patentl. A combined lid and sounding-board for a piano, composed of a thin resonant body conformed in contour to that of the piano and curved longitudinally and laterally, as set forth.

2. A combined lid and sounding-board for a piano, consisting of a body made of thin resonant material and conformed in contour to that of the piano, said body being curved longitudinally and laterally and adapted to be hinged to the piano, as set forth.

3. A piano or like instrument having a lid formed of thin resonant material and curved longitudinally and laterally, as and for the purpose set forth.

4. A piano or like instrument having a lid curved longitudinally and laterally and formed of resonant material and hinged thereto, as set forth.

5. A piano or like instrument having a concavo-convex lid-formed of thin strips of material and hinged thereto, as set forth.

6. In a piano or similar instrument, a concave main sounding-board and a lid curved longitudinally and laterally, substantially as specified.

7. A piano having a concave main sounding-board and provided with a lid curved longitudinally and laterallyand forming an auxiliary sounding-board, the lid and soundingboard being arranged with their concavities opposing each other, as set forth.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

SARAH WOOD CLARK.

Witnesses:

JNo. M. RITTER, O. R. FERGUSON. 

